The Food Pyramid

By breaking down the key nutritional elements in our food we can see what’s good or not so good for us.

This helps us to choose the best kinds of foods to eat to keep us healthy and energetic in a balanced diet.

Through sharing fun food facts, EUROSPAR aims to provide a thorough understanding of nutrition so that both current and future generations learn how healthy eating can contribute to growth and development. However the information on this site is purely a guideline and should not be used instead of consulting a health professional about dietary requirements.

Fats and Sugar

Just a little bit. Try not to eat too much of these foods as they are of little nutritional value, or often described as ’empty calories’.
Dietary fat also provides us with energy. Each gram of fat provides us with double the energy that carbohydrates do and we therefore need very little from our diet if we are only moderately active.

Proteins

2 servings a day. Protein forms the ‘building blocks’ of muscle, organs, hair and nails. Protein is made up of different amino acids and can be found in a very wide variety of foods.
Eating foods high in protein will assist in maintaining our muscles, organs, hair and nails.

Dairy

3-5 servings a day. As the main nutrient is calcium, dairy products help build strong teeth and bones which is especially essential in growing children.

Try to choose low-fat variants that are low in sugar such as semi-skimmed milk although babies and infants must be fed according to the advice of your health professional.

Grains

6-11 servings a day. These give us energy because they contain carbohydrates. Carbohydrates (CHO’s) from food provide us with energy and fibre or roughage. They are made up of different sugars, starches and cellulose. They can be ‘simple’ e.g. sugars/honey or ‘complex’ e.g. wheat. CHOS’s high in fibre or roughage help our digestive systems to function efficiently. CHO’s are not sources of fat and shouldn’t be completely omitted from your diet.

Fruit and Veg

5 servings a day. Vegetables and fruit are important to eat as they will provide many different vitamins and minerals, as well as being a source of roughage. It is better to eat more vegetables and less fruit which contain fruit sugars.